I am an Atheist. My wife has become increasingly religious as we have gotten older. She is now 68, while I trail at 64. She leads bible study before mass every Sunday and gives about $8000/yr. to her Methodist church.
I avoid discussing religion like it was the plague, because we have had the discussion a million times and logic goes nowhere when up against "we believe because we have FAITH". It leaves me feeling like I am missing the faith gene or soul gene. She came home from church a few weeks back baiting me with: "The preacher said that people who don't believe in God have no soul". Oh boy, blood pressure rising! But I resisted, and just gave her a "that's nice hun".
I was raised Catholic and was even an alter boy in my youth. This all came into serious question when I learned that a number of God's hand selected apostles (his priests) were abusing children sexually. This floored me! I took a critical look at everything that was previously part of my FAITH and the logic behind my beliefs just fell away. I was just left with this: God is invisible, hidden, cloaked, and a mystery for no reason! An all powerful God could clear up the mystery whenever he wanted. Instead he hides and allows violent divisions to tear his children apart, and then places a gag order on 100 billion souls who have died and are "imprisoned" in an eternal spirit heaven. The first Golden Rule must be "NO CONTACT" with earthlings!!! Is Heavens Gate more like the Berlin Wall?

(30-01-2018 12:19 PM)searcher2018 Wrote: I am an Atheist. My wife has become increasingly religious as we have gotten older. She is now 68, while I trail at 64. She leads bible study before mass every Sunday and gives about $8000/yr. to her Methodist church.
I avoid discussing religion like it was the plague, because we have had the discussion a million times and logic goes nowhere when up against "we believe because we have FAITH". It leaves me feeling like I am missing the faith gene or soul gene. She came home from church a few weeks back baiting me with: "The preacher said that people who don't believe in God have no soul". Oh boy, blood pressure rising! But I resisted, and just gave her a "that's nice hun".
I was raised Catholic and was even an alter boy in my youth. This all came into serious question when I learned that a number of God's hand selected apostles (his priests) were abusing children sexually. This floored me! I took a critical look at everything that was previously part of my FAITH and the logic behind my beliefs just fell away. I was just left with this: God is invisible, hidden, cloaked, and a mystery for no reason! An all powerful God could clear up the mystery whenever he wanted. Instead he hides and allows violent divisions to tear his children apart, and then places a gag order on 100 billion souls who have died and are "imprisoned" in an eternal spirit heaven. The first Golden Rule must be "NO CONTACT" with earthlings!!! Is Heavens Gate more like the Berlin Wall?

Brother?!
It's like looking in the mirror.
Although my wife knows better than to talk to me about religion.
I'm a lost cause.

Welcome
I`m an ex-catholic too, who started questioning her beliefs when faced with inconsistency and total hypocrisy of the RCC (and other Christian churches) on most liberal issues (i.e. social justice, homosexuality, women`s rights, etc. ad nauseum).

WRT faith, what can I say; there`s none so blind as those who will not see.
You can`t reason with someone who doesn`t accept reason itself.

Your faith is not evidence, your opinion is not fact, and your bias is not wisdom